Ron’s Reviews > The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible As Literally As Possible > Status Update

Chapter 4: Jacobs explores the world of bowdlerized movie services (they films are so chopped up they make no sense) and wonders if part of the appeal to religion is reducing the number of decisions we have to make every day.

So far these are very evenly spaced chapters. Jacobs' OCD at work? Anyway, Jacobs talks shop with a Jehovah's Witness until late at night when he (the missionary) can make an excuse to leave. Jacobs also starts to appreciate the psychological benefits of a few minutes a day of selfless contemplation.

Chapter 1 - September: Getting his feet wet, trying to accommodate the big stuff like the Commandments and tithing (which, to avoid conflict of interest, he gives to secular charities.) All his spiritual advisors are telling him not to be too legalistic about these things and to look for the point of the practice, but that doesn't make for an interesting enough book.

Introduction: Jacobs explains why he's doing this, mainly to explore his own secular life and see whether religion has anything to offer, and to get a better understanding of the significant number of Christians who claim to take the Bible literally.